cover image General A.P. Hill

General A.P. Hill

James I. Robertson. Random House (NY), $30 (382pp) ISBN 978-0-394-55257-6

Although Ambrose Powell Hill was a pivotal leader in nearly every major Civil War battle in the Eastern theater, until now he remained a comparatively obscure figure. Thanks to Robertson's discovery of Hill's Mexican and Civil War letters, a prewar diary and extensive family correspondence, Hill's character and personality come into focus at last. The new sources shed light on Hill's rivalry with George McClellan (later commander of the Union Army) for the hand of Ellen Marcy; his long-running feud with Stonewall Jackson; his difficulty mastering command of the Third Corps in Lee's army; and the circumstances of his death during the siege of Petersburg. Robertson also presents a convincing solution to a century-old puzzle by identifying the source of Hill's protracted illness: gonorrhea contracted while on furlough during his West Point days led to prostatitis. Author of The Stonewall Brigade, Robertson makes a major contribution to Civil War literature with this engrossing biography. Photos. (May 27)